What's new
AllBuffs | Unofficial fan site for the University of Colorado at Boulder Athletics programs

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • Prime Time. Prime Time. Its a new era for Colorado football. Consider signing up for a club membership! For $20/year, you can get access to all the special features at Allbuffs, including club member only forums, dark mode, avatars and best of all no ads ! But seriously, please sign up so that we can pay the bills. No one earns money here, and we can use your $20 to keep this hellhole running. You can sign up for a club membership by navigating to your account in the upper right and clicking on "Account Upgrades". Make it happen!

Bronco Mendenhall - Former HC at UVA & BYU

Mendenhall has been doing a weekly podcast (think they’re up to four episodes now) talking about why he stepped away from coaching, why he’s ready to get back into it, and a lot about his philosophies for building and running a program. The first episode is included below…interesting listen.


I’m sold, call him up and ship Dorrell to Siberia.

I like how he wants to take on struggling programs and build something for after he’s gone instead of complain about lack of xyz. I also love that he feels “safe” in his speech and mannerisms where CU would actually be interested too

Smoking craters like ours only come up every 50 years, so I hope he’s ready to jump in
 
Last edited:
I’m sold, call him up and ship Dorrell to Siberia.

I like how he wants to take on struggling programs and build something for after he’s gone instead of complain about lack of xyz. I also love that he feels “safe” in his speech and mannerisms where CU would actually be interested too

Smoking craters like ours only come up every 50 years, so I hope he’s ready to jump in
As I was listening, I kept thinking that his belief system about college football's role and the impact it can have would make him fit at CU like Tad Boyle does.

The way he calls it "Assessment and Selection" rather than recruiting. How he took recruits to his ranch to go horseback riding so they could get to know each other in an authentic way. How that translated to one of the lowest transfer rates in the country.

The stuff about how there's all this glitz around the 12 different uniforms and all the free team swag, but that no one really appreciates things they don't earn. So he'd start players out in white shorts and white shirts, no logo. They'd earn their gear through stadium step runs and other things like how you earn belts in martial arts. And the result was a real pride in those colors they had earned.

If we can get this guy, CU needs to make it happen. He'll build this program back. It will be family again. We will win. And whenever he decides to leave we'll maintain or expand on what he's built because the foundation will be so strong.
 
As I was listening, I kept thinking that his belief system about college football's role and the impact it can have would make him fit at CU like Tad Boyle does.

The way he calls it "Assessment and Selection" rather than recruiting. How he took recruits to his ranch to go horseback riding so they could get to know each other in an authentic way. How that translated to one of the lowest transfer rates in the country.

The stuff about how there's all this glitz around the 12 different uniforms and all the free team swag, but that no one really appreciates things they don't earn. So he'd start players out in white shorts and white shirts, no logo. They'd earn their gear through stadium step runs and other things like how you earn belts in martial arts. And the result was a real pride in those colors they had earned.

If we can get this guy, CU needs to make it happen. He'll build this program back. It will be family again. We will win. And whenever he decides to leave we'll maintain or expand on what he's built because the foundation will be so strong.
Agreed. He fits exactly what CU needs, not just based on W/L, but his entire strategy behind recruiting, transfers, etc. He would be able to exorcise the loser mindset out of the players and program. He’s actually inspiring and well spoken for a change. He’d handle media well.

I think if he was in the same room as CU admins, his answers are exactly what they want. You don’t need huge NIL with this guy. He’s not a huge rule bender. You can lean into the mountain western branding and differentiation. He’s so focused on positivity, foundation, stability and family in those answers.

This is what I imagine they were looking for when they hired Karl. They really missed the mark there, but I think this was the hope behind that.

Might get season tickets just so I can hold a Bronco Mendenhall sign at the rest of the games
 
Another thing is that we keep wanting for CU to be something it's not and to drive in the fast lane on how we bring in talent.

That will never be CU. So we need to stop wishing for it. Even if we tried to compete that way, we're outgunned and it's a game we cannot win.

When you can't win their game, you change the rules and play the game you can win. Like Harbaugh did at Stanford and what was done at ND State along with how the guys from there transformed WYO and KSU. What Fleck is doing at Minnesota. Be true to what you are and bring in players who fit that culture.
 
Another thing is that we keep wanting for CU to be something it's not and to drive in the fast lane on how we bring in talent.

That will never be CU. So we need to stop wishing for it. Even if we tried to compete that way, we're outgunned and it's a game we cannot win.

When you can't win their game, you change the rules and play the game you can win. Like Harbaugh did at Stanford and what was done at ND State along with how the guys from there transformed WYO and KSU. What Fleck is doing at Minnesota. Be true to what you are and bring in players who fit that culture.
Not to mention his Mormon faith and history at BYU being a massive plus for island recruiting

Also he doesn’t have a buyout.

Cmon Rick wtf are you waiting for
 
Another thing is that we keep wanting for CU to be something it's not and to drive in the fast lane on how we bring in talent.

That will never be CU. So we need to stop wishing for it. Even if we tried to compete that way, we're outgunned and it's a game we cannot win.

When you can't win their game, you change the rules and play the game you can win. Like Harbaugh did at Stanford and what was done at ND State along with how the guys from there transformed WYO and KSU. What Fleck is doing at Minnesota. Be true to what you are and bring in players who fit that culture.
Can't you argue Fitzgerald built Northwestern doing that?
 
Can't you argue Fitzgerald built Northwestern doing that?
I could name a lot of people. I'm really saying to be authentic to what's in your program DNA. I'm not making value judgments, but talking about fit. Like in basketball, Cal & Pitino were perfect for Kentucky and K was perfect for Duke.

A new culture needs to be established at CU. It will never be what went on with Mac & Gee then went off the rails in 2003. We haven't found the cultural fit that works with what CU is today and will continue to be. I believe Bronco would bring that with the way he runs his program.
 
I could name a lot of people. I'm really saying to be authentic to what's in your program DNA. I'm not making value judgments, but talking about fit. Like in basketball, Cal & Pitino were perfect for Kentucky and K was perfect for Duke.

A new culture needs to be established at CU. It will never be what went on with Mac & Gee then went off the rails in 2003. We haven't found the cultural fit that works with what CU is today and will continue to be. I believe Bronco would bring that with the way he runs his program.
Oh I completely agree. All three of these guys are culture builders. Bronco's a Gary Barnett type hire. His teams are disciplined, and they're well coached. The UVA experience is helpful too. He's been at a school that has better academics than CU.
 
Bronco talks about getting back into coaching at about the 24:00 mark. He talks about alignment within an administration which is a bad thing for us trying to get him, but I think he was talking about alignment in a couple different senses, the 2nd being a school aligned with what types of players they want to bring in. He also talked about the advantages a school in the coaching market would have by hiring someone midseason to get a jump on recruiting and building the roster going forward.

And FWIW, Rece seemed to think he was politicking for the Nebraska job

 
Bronco talks about getting back into coaching at about the 24:00 mark. He talks about alignment within an administration which is a bad thing for us trying to get him, but I think he was talking about alignment in a couple different senses, the 2nd being a school aligned with what types of players they want to bring in. He also talked about the advantages a school in the coaching market would have by hiring someone midseason to get a jump on recruiting and building the roster going forward.

And FWIW, Rece seemed to think he was politicking for the Nebraska job


Don’t think he’s a big enough “name” for Nebraska.
 
Don’t think he’s a big enough “name” for Nebraska.
Yeah, I think he's probably exactly what Nebraska needs right now, but I don't think he's a guy who is going to get that fanbase fired up.

I think Nebraska's target (not necessarily realistic) list is going to be guys like Urban Meyer, Luke Fickell, Matt Campbell, Tom Herman, Dan Mullen, Bill O'Brien, Matt Rhule, and maybe Lance Leipold (although that one would entirely hinge on how he does the rest of the season and how he's viewed), etc.

I wouldn't even be surprised by them approaching some current successful B1G or SEC HCs and throwing $100m+ to pry them away
 
I would think guys like Jeff Brohm, Dave Clawson, Dave Aranda, maybe Kiffin(?), or even PJ Fleck could be targets of the Nubs. I don't know, Kiffin and Fleck seem far fetched, but is Minnesota going to give Fleck $100m? I read that Mississippi law prohibits public employees from signing contracts that are longer than 4 years and Kiffin currently makes about $7.5m/year. Would 10 years, $100m pry him away from Ole Miss?
 
I could see Nebraska “settling” for a candidate like Bronco after all their top options reject them
 
Won't happen. Nub plan is to become good again by being incredibly aggressive on NIL to load up the talent. That's not Bronco.
When you're a program that has designs on competing with Ohio State and Michigan for B1G titles, it's the only way you can go. I think BM would be a great hire for CU, but if you're being honest with yourself, he's not going to compete with Ohio State and Michigan consistently.

When there is an expanded playoff, I could see him getting his program into it every so often, but he hasn't proven to be a guy who gets his program to elite status.
 
Won't happen. Nub plan is to become good again by being incredibly aggressive on NIL to load up the talent. That's not Bronco.
Everybody has a price point and Nebraska would play that game if they really wanted him.

Nebraska will back up the brinks truck to Urban, Fickell, and Campbell. Then work their way from there.
 
Dear ****braska: please hire bill o'brien. Thank you.

I think he's the most likely hire. Read something about him and and Trev being close.

this is exactly the choice they need to make. it so perfectly awful and predictable and will lead to another long reign of suckitude. we may suck but watching the fuskers light themselves on fire never gets old.
 
I think one thing that's being lost here is that Bronco is a weirdo, in a good way. I think he would fit well within the larger Boulder community. He is nerdy as hell and had a book club for his players at Virginia.

I think he's a good regional fit, would establish a much better baseline than what we have seen and would genuinely his time within the Boulder community. I think he would also have an actually fun offense, which hasn't happened in Boulder in a while.

Would be a must for me for him to bring Robert Anae back from Syracuse. They work magic together and we should be able to outbid Syracuse
 
I think one thing that's being lost here is that Bronco is a weirdo, in a good way. I think he would fit well within the larger Boulder community. He is nerdy as hell and had a book club for his players at Virginia.

I think he's a good regional fit, would establish a much better baseline than what we have seen and would genuinely his time within the Boulder community. I think he would also have an actually fun offense, which hasn't happened in Boulder in a while.

Would be a must for me for him to bring Robert Anae back from Syracuse. They work magic together and we should be able to outbid Syracuse
Doubt you get Anae, but you might pull the longtime QB coach Jason Beck who was with Mendenhall and Anae at BYU, Virginia, and is now with Anae at Cuse.
 
Doubt you get Anae, but you might pull the longtime QB coach Jason Beck who was with Mendenhall and Anae at BYU, Virginia, and is now with Anae at Cuse.
Why couldn't we get Anae? It's not like the ACC is swimming in cash and Anae obviously likes working for Mendenhall. Just wondering why you think that's out of the question
 
I would like Mendenhall, but what are you smoking with him "vibing" with the Boulder community? The three little letters LDS are going to put him on the outs with them right off the bat.
 
Why couldn't we get Anae? It's not like the ACC is swimming in cash and Anae obviously likes working for Mendenhall. Just wondering why you think that's out of the question
Not out of the question and no inside scoop. Just seems like the kind of guy who would be reluctant to bounce after a year from Cuse.
 
Bronco talks about getting back into coaching at about the 24:00 mark. He talks about alignment within an administration which is a bad thing for us trying to get him, but I think he was talking about alignment in a couple different senses, the 2nd being a school aligned with what types of players they want to bring in. He also talked about the advantages a school in the coaching market would have by hiring someone midseason to get a jump on recruiting and building the roster going forward.

And FWIW, Rece seemed to think he was politicking for the Nebraska job


I actually think he was trying to get in play HERE.
 
Not sure i understand the love on this one. Decent guy/coach. BYU maintained and arguably got better since he’s been gone. He was 36-38 at Virginia and 1-2 in bowl games in 6 years. He’s saying all the right things on his podcast but you could argue he’s just selling himself for another job.
 
Back
Top